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Sunday, April 13, 2008

Lawson's No Goal

There's a couple pretty good replays of Kyle Lawson's disallowed goal in last night's championship game over at ESPN.

I've got a couple thoughts on the play, some of which may be at odds with each other.

1. The way that rule is written is absolutely awful. It's so unclear that it's almost impossible to get the "right" call.

2. There probably wouldn't be as much discussion about this if Gary Thorne hadn't framed things the way he did, pointing out that Lawson didn't really make contact as he was "kicking" the puck.

3. Semantically, my definition of a kick involves winding up to strike the puck. Lawson clearly doesn't do that. Is a half-a-kick still a kick?

4. Greg Shepherd has no business even being in the building last night, let alone making important calls. My faith in him to make the correct call is absolutely zero. He's been nothing but an embarrassment for the WCHA.

15 comments:

Anonymous
said...

I'm a Badger fan with no affinity towards either team, but I thought it should have been a goal. The puck hit bounced of the skate when it was standing still. That call changed the whole complexion of the game. WCHA officiating has been an embaressment this year and no WCHA official should've been 100 miles of Denver.

Remember that interview with Shephard from a few weeks back, during the women's WCHA finals? The one where he said he'd like to see video replays taken out of the game?

So tell me how it makes any sense that somebody who is so against the system is in charge of it in the biggest game of the year?

Some people like to argue that these guys are in a damned if you damned if you don't position and they wouldn't want to have to make the calls...but that's the thing about Shephard and company. They WANT to be the center of attention, they WANT to influence the outcome of the games. They are probably the most egotistical group of people (referees in general) in the country. They SHOULD be criticized, or their egotism will forever go unchallenged.

Thank you Bruce McLeod for embarrasing all of college hockey with allowing the continual monkey + football officiating. I'm sure an apology letter is coming to ND right? I mean, that always makes it all better doesn't it?

Sheppard as a video reviewer blew a call in the Frozen Four in the UMD-Denver game 4 years ago (goal that should have been allowed) and there was never a formal explanation of why it wasn't a goal for that play even though the formal request was made because they couldn't come up with one and after that debacle he should have never been put in that position again. He just doesn't have good judgement and they are asking for trouble to keep using him.

I believe the officials got it right on this one. I believe the player was trying to direct the puck with his skate, in order to get at it with his stick. He was interrupted by a defensive move and never touched the puck with his stick. The puck ended up going off his other skate and into the net, unintentionally. But, yes, he was trying to direct the puck with his skate and it did end up in the net without anyone else coming in contact with the puck. Clearly, no goal on this one. Good call.

If it is possible for WCHA rival fans to agree on anything it is that, hands down, the league has the worst officiating in all of College Hockey. How many more screw-ups will the schools endure before this issue is addressed?

Bucky Boy, you should read the rules...it is not illegal to direct a puck into the net off of a skate...If you think the puck was simply redirected off of Lawson's skates than it should have been a goal...the rule says something to the effect of a goal can not be scored by someone kicking (a deliberate motion towards the net). That most certainly should have been a goal...

Hey Bucky (cute name btw)... you completely contridicted yourself with this comment "The puck ended up going off his other skate and into the net, unintentionally." When there is a kicking motion made INTENTIONALLY then there is no goal. So yea, whatever... it was a bad call by bad officiating...AGAIN!

I favored neither team in this game, but I do like to see the right calls made on all goals. The game was meant to be played such that sticks are used to score goals. Obviously, just about any goal scored in which the last contact was with a skate, especially close to the net, merits serious review by the officials. If it had been a bang-bang play in which no effort was made to direct the puck, then I'd have no problem calling it a goal. But when the player makes a clear attempt to use his skate to change the path of the puck toward the net, then there has to be a no-goal call. It's a close call but the right one, especially in such an important game. Goals can't appear tainted in an NCAA title game -- and this one would have been.

I would encourage all to check out Jim Connelly's "NCAA clarifies Notre Dame non-goal" story over at USCHO. The story, with comments from Ty Halpin, NCAA associate director of playing rules administration and staff liaison to the ice hockey rules committee, offers a pretty good explanation for the non-goal call. In short, Halpin says, "In the end, the correct call was made."

It's important to keep in mind that the rules committee approved the following definition of a distinct kicking motion as "the skate moving toward the goal line."

Thank goodness a quality and experienced official like Greg Shepherd of the WCHA was on the scene to make the correct call after the initial officiating error was made on the ice. A lesser official might have blown this one.

Bucky it's clear you have never played hockey because you haven't a clue. He was attempting to get the puck to his stick and in doing so tried to use his feet. The overhead view clearly shows his skate going parallel to the goal if he had intended to kick or direct the puck in to the net his skate would have been perpendicular to the goal line. ND got HOSED!